Drabbles! We have Drabbles!
by SWWoman
Summary: A place for me to publish my drabbles. These will be Careese, of course, and most of them will be pretty tame. I'll warn you if one is M rated. Chapters 12-14 are new.
1. I Wanna Hold Your Hand

_The prompt for this drabble was "_ Reese and Carter hold hands for the first time in public"

* * *

 _OhMyGod, He's holding my hand!_

Joss tried to remain calm and not freak out when John had casually took her hand in his as they walked down the street towards their favorite diner.

 _Don't make a big deal about this Joss, or he'll never hold your hand in public again._

John had been shy about expressing his affection for her in public. He was gentle and loving in private, but there hadn't been any public displays of affection. Until now.

 _Why now?_

They had just saved a little girl from certain death. John must be feeling pretty good right now.

 _Does it matter?...No, it doesn't_

Joss decided to relax and simply enjoy the fact that their relationship had taken a big step forward. She squeezed his hand and smiled up at him. He smiled back at her and they walked on in quiet compatibility.


	2. Comfort

The prompt for this drabbles was "Carter's mother has a heart attack, Reese comforts her when she gets home from the hospital."

* * *

Joss unlocked her apartment and dropped her keys and purse on the table by the door. She was bone tired after spending the day at the hospital dealing with doctors, admission clerks and other assorted personnel. It was bad enough her mother Alice had a major heart attack during her Bible study, but it had been left up to Joss to be the family rock in this time of crisis, the role her mother usually took. Her family exhausted her.

Worse of all had been her Aunt Billie, her mother's younger sister and the family hysteric. Every family has that one person who falls apart during every crisis and in her family this was Aunt Billie. Billie had spent her time in the waiting room wailing about "How am I gonna survive without my big sister, the most important person in THE WORLD?" Fortunately her son Phil had arrived quickly and hustled her home as soon as Alice was declared to be out of danger. But Joss really could have done without Billie, she had sucked up energy Joss needed for other matters.

Joss sighed and threw herself down into her favorite chair. She knew she should fix herself something to eat and go to bed, but she was too tired to move and too keyed up to sleep. She sat in her chair and finally allowed the tears she had been holding back all day spill down her cheeks. She had come very close to losing her mother. Fortunately Taylor was with his dad tonight, so she could let the tears flow. She didn't have to be the family rock anymore.

Joss looked up when she heard the lock on her door click and John Reese strolled into her apartment carrying a pizza and a six pack.

"Wh…what are you doing here?" she demanded swiping at her tears. Curse him for showing up when her mascara was smeared all over her face.

He smirked at her. "I heard you had a bad day and thought you could use some food and a shoulder lean on."

"How..? Never mind… Finch."

John nodded in confirmation. "He's been monitoring you all day since you got the call." John looked at her with the softest look she had seen from him. "I told you you're not alone."

At that, the floodgates opened and Joss burst into tears.

John set the pizza and beer down on the coffee table and dropped to his knees in front of her chair. He reached up and pulled her down so she was sitting in his lap. She buried her head in his shoulder and cried while he held her tight against him.

He just held her like that for as long as she needed.


	3. Surprise

John was finishing his chore of cleaning the kitchen after dinner when he heard Joss call his name. He turned and his jaw dropped until it landed on the floor with audible thud.

Joss was leaning against the door frame, in nothing other than a leather bikini with a pair of her handcuffs dangling from one finger.

"Your presence is requested in the bedroom," she purred in a sultry voice while running a hand down her side.

John never moved so fast in his life.


	4. Spider

Joss was settled in her favorite chair in the living room on a rare afternoon off, reading a book she had been trying to get to for month. She looked up from her book to see John walking through the living with his hands cupped together.

She frowned. "What are you doing?"

He stopped and looked at her, the tips of his ears turning a light shade of pink. "I'm taking this spider outside," he replied.

Joss frowned deepened. "Why don't you just kill it?"

John shuffled his feet and looked a bit embarrassed. "It doesn't deserve it."

Joss looked at him for a minute then smiled. "I'll get the door for you, " she said as she set her book down and got up.


	5. Sorry

"Joss, honey, I'm sorry." John knelt on the floor in front of his furious beloved and looked up at her with his blue eyes silently pleading for her forgiveness.

Joss glared down at him from her seat on the couch. "Don't you do that!" she snarled.

John blinked at her in confusion. "Do what?"

"Look at me with those baby blues of yours," she huffed.

John's eyes opened wide in surprise. "How else am I supposed to look at you?" he asked as his confusion deepened. He knew she was livid at him for his latest dumb ass stunt, and she had every right to be, but how was he going to make it up to her if he couldn't even look at her?

"You know I can't resist you when you look at me like that!" she snapped. "I want to be mad at you for a good long time!"

Successfully hiding his smirk, he finally understood what she was saying. He sat next to her on the couch and pulled her into his arms, gently nuzzling her neck. "I know you're mad, but I want to make it up to you." His grabbed her ear lobe between his teeth and let it slowly slide out. "Please?"

Joss gasped. "Promise to never do that again?" she moaned as John nipped at her throat.

"Promise."

"Dammit." Joss pushed John back on the couch and pounced on him like a lioness on a gazelle.


	6. Shopping

"Ok you got a pen handy? We need milk, eggs, pasta and see if they have some of that think cut bologna that Taylor likes." Joss shifted her cell phone. "Yeah, that sounds good too. Yeah….OK…thanks baby. I love you too." Joss hung up with a smile on her face.

She looked at her partner sitting across the table from her and saw that he was staring at her, his eyes wide with what could only be described as shock. "Wonder Boy does the grocery shopping?" he asked incredulously.

Joss laughed. "Yeah, he likes doing to domestic things like that. He likes to cook too, so he does it whenever he can. Who am I to argue? It's nice having someone to share chores with for a change. "

Fusco shook his head. "You domesticated Batman!"


	7. Flowers

John unlocked the door and walked into the apartment. "Joss?" he called out as he took off his coat.

"In the kitchen!" she called back.

John walked into the kitchen to find Joss stirring the cheese sauce for her mac and cheese. With a smile, he presented her with a perfect red rose.

"Oh John, it's lovely!" Joss took the flower and in inhaled its fresh scent. "What is this for? Did you shoot someone again?"

John grinned as he shook his head. "No, no gunshots today. It's just because I love you."

"You're single handedly keeping the florists of New York in business! Who knew The Man in the Suit was such a romantic?"

John gently kissed her. "Keep it to yourself. I have reputation to protect."

Joss laughed. "No one would believe me anyway."


	8. Home

"How can a grown man not know how to install a simple ceiling fan?" groused Joss as she stood on top of the ladder. "Hand me the pliers."

John, looking somewhat abased, handed her the requested tool. "I'm sorry Joss," he said quietly. "I've never had a home before, so I never needed to learn how to do this."

Joss stopped what she was doing and immediately climbed down off the ladder. She threw her arms around a confused John a kissed him passionately. "You have a home now," she said fiercely.


	9. Laundry

Joss does the laundry. The problem with wearing only white shirts, black socks and dry clean only suits is that one does not learn the concept of sorting laundry by color. After a disaster where John washed one of Joss's red blouses with his white shirts, turning them a lovely shade of blush pink, Joss gently suggested that maybe she should take over laundry duties. John sheepishly agreed, and then they rushed to the store to replace all of John's white shirts before he was forced to wear one of the pink shirts around Shaw.


	10. The Remote

Why do men always hog the damn remote? Joss thought to herself as she crawled over John trying to get to the prize. Unfortunately for her, John had very long arms and he easily kept the remote out of reach.


	11. The Last Slice

There was one slice of pizza left in the box.

"You can have it," John said. He really wanted it, but he was trying to be polite.

"No, it's alright you take it," Joss said. She really wanted it, but she didn't want to look like a pig in front of her lover.

"Oh cool there's a piece left!" Taylor exclaimed as he snatched the last slice and gobbled it down as only a hungry teenager can do.


	12. Move In

**Prompt: Was the first to suggest they move in together?**

* * *

"You know John, you might as well just move in."

John nearly gagged on his beer. He stared at Joss. "What?" he asked his eyes wide.

"I've just been thinking. You're over here all the time when you aren't working. Taylor approves of our relationship. Why not just have you move in?"

John looked around Joss's living room. It was much smaller than his spacious loft. The kitchen was minuscule compared to his, and there was barely enough room in the living room for Joss, Taylor and him to watch TV together comfortably. There was no way there was room in the closet in the master bedroom for him to squeeze his clothes in with Joss's.

But as he looked he saw all the little touches that made Joss's apartment a home. There were pictures on the mantel of Joss and Taylor and their family. There was a lopsided clay pot Taylor made in sixth grade on the end table next to the lamp that belonged to Joss's grandmother. The afghan the Joss's mother had crocheted was tossed over the back of the arm chair. It was very different from his perfectly clean and professionally designed loft.

He got a small smile on his face. "OK."


	13. Beaten

**There was no specific prompt for this one, it just popped into my head one night**

* * *

It happened again today, John came home beaten and bloody.

Joss tried to hide her concern as she looked at him, but she was unsuccessful. John gave her a crooked grin – crooked because of his split lip- and tried to make a joke about how she should see the loser, but she wasn't in a laughing mood.

She led him into the bedroom where she helped him strip off his torn clothing, taking note of how carefully he moved so as to not aggravate his already painful wounds. She made him sit on the bed while she grabbed the first aid supplies out of the bathroom and tended to his various hurts.

"So many men this time John?' she asked, trying to keep her voice casual, despite the lump in her throat.

"Six, but not all at once."

Joss swallowed hard.

"I'll be fine, Joss. Nothing serious," John tried to reassure her. He was always remorseful when he saw the look on her face when he came home looking like he had been shoved through a wood chipper, but he was compelled to help, compelled to protect. His only regret was the toll it took on the woman who was bold enough to love him.

"The next time it could be," she said softly. "How much longer can you keep this up John?"

He looked down at his bloody knuckles as Joss smeared antibiotic ointment on them and then bandaged them. "I don't know," he admitted, his voice heavy. "I just know I'm not done yet."

Joss nodded, gathered up the supplies and retreated to the bathroom to put them away. She stood for a few minutes looking in the mirror as she regained her composure. She knew who John was when she got involved with him, she knew he lived to prevent bad things from happening to good people and she knew he couldn't live without his purpose. She has told herself the she would rather live one day with him than forever with anyone else. But, on the rare days when she was being honest with herself, she knew that she wanted forever with _him_. The night he finally didn't come home, the night where he finally fought one too many battles and lost, that would be the night that destroyed her for good.

Her emotions under control, Joss returned to the bedroom to find John had already curled up under the blanket and asleep. She smiled down at his face, still handsome despite the slightly battered appearance. She quietly took off her clothes and crawled under the covers, snugging up to his side, being careful not aggravate any of his wounds. Then she too slept, but not before thanking God for the opportunity to have at least one more night with him.


	14. Sheer

**This one was inspired by the dress Taraji recently to the BET awards**

* * *

"I'm coming out, and I'm gonna kill y'all for this!" Joss yelled through the bedroom door

John was leaning against the mantle, sipping a glass of liquid courage in his tux. He looked at Finch in alarm, just what had the billionaire done? But Finch was looking alarmed as well, he had no idea why the detective was on the war path. John sighed, he was already not looking forward to a fancy dress evening, now he was going to have to deal with a pissed off and well-armed Joss Carter all night. The things he did to save lives….

Then Joss stepped through the door, and John - who had never been religious, even in a fox hole under fire - nearly dropped to his knees and praised God.

Joss was STUNNING. Her hair was long and straight, simply brushed back from her lovely face. Her make-up was minimal and her only jewelry was a pair of long silver earrings. She was wearing a simple strapless black leotard with a sheer skirt with sliver highlights woven into it. Paired with high hell Jimmy Choo sandals, it showed off her long, perfectly shaped legs like the works of art they were.

"I feel like I'm wearing a bathing suit to fanciest ball of the year!" she whined and she shifted uncomfortably.

John, Finch, Fusco and Shaw didn't respond, they were too busy staring open mouthed at the goddess before them. Joss didn't notice as she fidgeted uncomfortably.

The stylist Finch had hired, a hipster who went by the single name of "Pietro", followed her out of the bedroom with a smirk firmly planted on his face. "Detective, sheer is in! And your body is perfect for it. Look at these people, they are speechless!"

Joss looked around the room at the stunned expression of her friends and comprehension dawned on her that she did indeed look GOOD. Her eyes locked with John's across the room and he grinned like a fool at her. Joss ducked her head shyly and she looked at him from underneath her lashes.

Of course it was Show who ruined the moment. "Damn Carter, you look HOT! I want to take you out myself!"

John glared over at his partner, barely repressing an urge to snap the tiny operative in half.

Joss merely smiled. "Thanks Shaw, but I'll pass." Then, with her head held high, she walked over to John and snatched the drink out of his hands, She knocked it back with one gulp and then took John's arm. "Let go save a life."

John gave Shaw a triumphant grin and escorted his date out the door.


End file.
